Lamp-cap



W. BELL.

Lamp Extinguisher.

Patented Nov. 14, 1854.

UNITED STATES PATENT oEEIoE.

WILLIAM BELL, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

LAMP- GAP.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 11,928, dated November 14, 1854.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, WM. BELL, of Boston, int-he county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have made a new anduseful Improvement in Lamp-Caps; and I hereby declare the following tobe a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being hadto the annexed drawings, making part of this specification.

In lamps for burning spirit gas, as constructed previous to my presentinvention, it has been necessary to unscrew the lamp cap each time thelamp was filled, and where this has been carelessly done, explosions andfatal accidents have resulted. To obviate this a cylinder of perforatedmetal or of wire gauze has been attached to the cap, within which thewick was inclosed, and which was surrounded by another cylinder ofgauze, that when the cap was removed for the purpose of filling the lampthe flame, should it be accidentally lighted, might not ignite the fluidwithin. The expense of making these two cylinders was considerable, andtheir use was furthermore objectionable, on account of the unusualappearance which they presented within the lamp, and also because theinner tube had to be entirely removed from the lamp before the lattercould be filled, and the fluid was thus liable to drop upon any objectnear.

To remedy these objections and at the same time to afford an equaldegree of safety I have made the following invention which consists inperforating the lamp cap itself with a hole of sufficient size to enablethe lamp to be filled therein, and adapting to it a small chamber orsack of perforated metal or wire gauze, by which means the lamp may befilled without unscrewing the lamp cap, and all danger of explosionavoided.

Considerable inconvenience has been found to result from the longchains, which it was found necessary to use for the purpose of attachingthe extinguishers to the lamp caps. To remedy this I have adapted ringsto the lamp tubes, which are furnished with suitable stops to preventthe rings from being slipped off, the extinguishers being secured to therings by short chains, and thus all inconvenience resulting from theinterference of the chains with each other is avoided.

Some method of preventing the fall of the wick through the tubes, isvery necessary in lamps for burning mixtures, of which alcohol is aprincipal ingredient, as the wick in such lamps is made much smallerthan in others. Springs and points have been made use of for the purposeof holding the wick, but have been found to be objectionable on accountof their original cost and liability to get out of repair.

In order that others skilled in the art may make and use my invention, Iwill proceed to describe the manner in which I have carried it out.

Figure l is a view of my lamp cap with the improvements applied. Fig. 2is a section through the tubes. Fig. 3 is a section at right angles tothe former, and through the aperture by which the lamp is fed.

A are the tubes bent at a, for the purpose of retaining the wick fromfalling.

B is a small chamber of perforated tin, or wire gauze, placed at theside of the tubes, and beneath the cap; into this chamber an opening ismade through the cap, which is fitted with a suitable stopper 1).Through the center of this stopper is a small tube h, for the purpose ofpermitting the vapor from within the lamp to escape, and thus avoid thedanger of explosions. 0 are rings sliding freely upon the tubes, uponwhich they are retained by suitable stops d. These rings are connectedwith the extinguishers f, by short chains 9. When the extinguishers arein use, the rings 0 slide upon the tubes until they reach the stops d,and when the lamp is burning they drop into the position seen in Figs. 2and 3. By this arrangement I am enabled to make use of chains so shortthat they cannot interfere with each other, and thus all inconvenienceand annoyance from this source is avoided.

I do not claim the use of wire gauze, or perforated tin, for the purpose'of preventing the explosion of spirit lamps; but

What I do claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

The perforation in the lamp cap in combination with the short chamber ofperforated tin, ire gauze or other analogous In testimony whereof I havehereunto set eontrivance, by which means the lamp may my signature thisnineteenth day of May 10 be filled without removing the cap, and the A.One thousand eight hundred and fifty spirit ithin the lamp may beprotected three.

5 from igniting When the lamp is filled, With WM. BELL.

out the use of the double cylinder of Wire Witnesses: gauze orperforated sheet metal, as hereto- SETH J. THOMAS,

fore employed. E. C. BANFIELD.

